A Broken Star And A Fallen Angel
by NicoAyase
Summary: An AU I wrote where Nico And Yoshiko are young twins that were separated when their parents divorced and were both forced to live apart, they both have to deal with different forms of abuse and all both of them wish is that they could have a normal loving family. It's a lot more complex then this I'm sorry I ran out of space, please read!
1. Chapter 1

**I hope you enjoy! Please leave a review if possible, I would love your feedback! Abuse warning.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live or any of it's characters.**

 **xx**

They always met in the same spot, and neither of them was ever late. That's why, as she hugged her small legs to her chest, Yoshiko felt so confused. Nico was never late. It was their unwritten rule. Yoshiko tried to count the raindrops as she waited.

"Sorry Yo-chan," Nico suddenly made her appearance with a forced smile on gracing her small lips. Both girls were small, but Nico was much more noticeably so. She always had been.

"It's okay, just come here," Yoshiko wrapped her arms around Nico's neck, pulling her into the little plastic tunnel.

"I'm so sorry Yo-chan, it's… hard… to get away from, well him," Nico muttered.

"I thought dad wasn't home, he almost never was before," Yoshiko whispered, her anger slipping into her voice as she held her wet twin close to her, not minding the water seeping into her own clothing.

"He wasn't, but he has people and cameras to watch me, I don't know why he cares, he never cared what we did when we lived together," Nico unwrapped her arms around Yoshiko and held her hand.

"Mom lets me come whenever I want, as long as I'm back before her," Yoshiko's voice dropped at the mention of their mother.

"How is mom?"

"How is dad?"

"I asked first," Nico giggled and Yoshiko couldn't help but smile. She ran her hand up the length of Nico's arm to rest on her shoulders, pulling her smaller sister into an awkward side hug.

"Mom is… Well, she's the been the same since her and dad broke up, she comes home late and barely talks to me, she always smells weird too, and well, she treats me weird, in the morning, she acts like she used too, when we were younger, but at night she's mean, she tells me to stay away from her, and she doesn't care what I do," Yoshiko explained, Nico's red eyes peaking up at her's.

"Except talk to me," Nico filled in.

"Except talk to you," Yoshiko repeated. Even after three years of secret meet-ups in the small plastic tunnel in a park halfway between their houses, it still stung that her mother had banned her from talking to Nico. They broke that rule a lot over three years. "How's dad?" Yoshiko noticed as Nico's muscles all went tense at the mere mention of the word.

"He has to work a lot, he comes home at night, but I never see him in the morning, he's mean now Yo-chan, and always stressed," Nico left out a lot. Both of them knew it. The rest went unsaid.

"I'm sorry," Yoshiko whispered. Nico was taking deliberately slow breathes, trying to clam her raging bruises and burning memories. Yoshiko knew this technique well, she taught it to Nico after all.

"It's okay, I brought cake, I told Wami-san it was for 'my friend' that I'm meeting here," Nico took her backpack off her back with another fake smile.

"Thanks Nico," Yoshiko muttered as her sister handed her a piece of cake.

"It's good right?" Nico reenforced her smile.

"Yeah, it is," Yoshiko commented.

"What's wrong? Do you not like chocolate anymore?"

"No, I love chocolate, it tastes exactly like I remember, it's just, I miss you," Yoshiko muttered, noticing the way Nico paused. Nico came closer and rested her head on Yoshiko's shoulder.

"I miss you too."

 **xx**

Their mom didn't live in the richest of neighborhoods, not the poorest of neighborhoods, but in suburbia. The middle class capital of the world. The houses weren't too cheap, not too expensive, and all looked the exact same, the definition of cookie cutter. Despite all the houses looking the same, Yoshiko knew her way around the whole neighborhood, and generally knew what people lived where, not to say they all knew who she was. Yoshiko and her mother were relatively new to the area, having only lived there for three years, and they never took part in the social activities. Because her mom worked, she didn't have time to be social with the other moms like they had demanded, and Yoshiko was younger than most of the other kids. The habit came from their father, Yoshiko supposed. Their habit of being closed away from the world. Yoshiko turned down invitations to birthday parties and her mother turned down invitations to social events, so at some point, everyone had given up.

"I'm home," Yoshiko announced, slipping off her wet jacket and peering down the empty hallway. Yoshiko wondered up the stairs and threw her wet clothes on the ground. Her new room was much smaller than her old one. Yoshiko's memories of their old house were vague. Their father had an insanely high paying job, she couldn't remember what he did exactly anymore that was too far lost in her memory, and their mother had a stable fair paying middle class job, so their old house was much like the one Nico lived in now, big.

"Stupidly big," Yoshiko whispered to her self. Stupid big was the perfect word to describe how large of a house Nico lived in. It was too large to even use most of the space. Yoshiko scooted her wet clothes off the carpet and onto the tile floor of her bathroom with her foot, going into her closet and choosing her pajamas over an actual outfit. Yoshiko remembered hating all the space they had, it made her feel lost by the sheer largeness of it all. Or maybe she was just too young. She had never been inside Nico's house, and Nico had never been in her own, but from what she heard it was worse now.

Yoshiko wondered downstairs and looked through the pantry for dinner. If only Nico could teach her how to cook.

Nico was an amazing cook, the talent all went to Nico. Nico had good grades (not including math), she was an amazing piano player (they're Uncle played, and even through Yoshiko had no vivd memories of taking piano lessons, she remembered Nico always seemed to know what keys to press), she could cook, and she was adorable. Everyone thought Nico was adorable. Despite the fact she was already six and in second grade, everyone thought she was four, they always wondered why she was in elementary school if she was so young. Nico would always release a long sigh and tell them her actual age.

Yoshiko never ran into this problem however. She was the more developed twin, the older one. When they're parents were deciding who would go where, her father almost picked her, because she was technically older, even if only a few minutes, but she was once again overshadowed by her younger sister's vast intelligence and knack for memory. Traditions of picking the oldest were now lost to history, not that she was complaining. That made her feel terrible though, since she didn't have to live with their father Nico did.

Nico however, sucked at math. Yoshiko wondered how her sister could be so perfect at everything but math, math was a smudge on her otherwise perfectly polished sister. Yoshiko did not miss being rich. She could say that for sure.

Yoshiko ended up deciding on instant ramen for dinner, easy, and even she could do it. She opened the packet and with another loud audible sound, she poured water in and put the noodles in the microwave.

 **xx**

Nico hated her house. It was large. Too large considering only her and her father lived there full time. Sure they had staff that cooked meals and cleaned their house, but none of them lived on the property. They could house all the staff and still have too much space though. Her house was just a large fancy prison cell. Her father was always inclined to believe that she would run away if he didn't put security cameras every where, it was true though, she would have run away if she had the chance. But she was stuck, and the walls suffocated her and her young adventurous spirt desired to play outside or explore new places. She would never get the chance though.

Dinner had gone as always, her and her father sat on opposite ends of a too long table and ate some kind of foreign dish she couldn't pronounce the name of if she tried in suffocating silence. He was reading through some documents while she was expected to sit and look pretty. Dinner parties were always the worst of course, the hours of watching adults and their spoiled children talk for hours on end with nothing exciting was nothing but dull to her. She had seen it all before.

Nico then excused herself to her room, silently opening her latest book. She wasn't allowed to watch TV on school nights, a rule she resented almost as much as not being allowed to see Yoshiko. She loved her sister, but TV was something she used to escape. She sighed as she prepared for what he had in store for her tonight, a shiver running up her spine at the thought.

Her room was cold. She liked sleeping in the cold, quite the opposite of Yoshiko. But sometimes, when she was wishing for the warmth of another person in the middle of the night when she can't even function properly enough to turn the air conditioner up, she would miss warmth.

Warmth was something she had never felt. For as long as she could remember, warmth had never been apart of her life. Even when her and Yoshiko still lived together, and her sister (most of the time it was the other way around though) would sneak into her bed because their parents had gotten into another argument, she still didn't understand the concept of finding comfort in another person. She was trained by the military general (he was never in the real army though, as he was too rich to dirty himself in something like war) she called a father to believe that people were only used for gain, and that people wanted to use you for their own personal gain. Nico didn't like this way of thinking, but it was what was thrust upon her when it was decided she would be her father's successor and not Yoshiko.

Yoshiko was the strong one. Always had been and always would be. Nico was jealous of Yoshiko. Yoshiko was strong, and she could come up with her own means of escape from any situation, even if it means claiming she's a fallen angel. Nico was jealous, she just got really nervous and pretended to know what she was doing even though most of the time, she didn't.

Nico heard her door creak open and she knew what was happening. She sighed and accepted her fate like she did every night, as long as Yoshiko was safe, nothing in the world could kill her.

 **xx**

If you were to ask Yoshiko why she's such close friends with her own cousin, she would answer with two simple words, the split. When Yoshiko went under her mother's care, she was suddenly banned from seeing her father, and only allowed to see his family on very certain occasions. Yoshiko, despite not being able to see them most of the time, was close with all three of her cousins, and when she found out they went to the same school, it only reenforced the idea. Jotto Private Academy was the best school in the whole country looking from an academic stand-point, It stood out on a map as a perfect example of parents stepping back and letting the professionals take over, even if it meant a lot of pressure on their children to do well in school at an early age.

Their school was separated into six classes per grade, and each class was separated by a test taken at the beginning of the year. A was the highest created for only the brightest of students from all over Japan and from some other surrounding countries to be placed into a class with basically the tools to do whatever their rich hearts desire. Yoshiko was never in class A, but Nico was.

Yoshiko was always in class B, close to the top, but not quite there. Class B hated class A, the tension between the two had gone on for years. But despite the fact the hated each other, they had learned to accept the fact they knew more than the average student their age and they took advanced courses together. A and B were combined a lot for lectures, to make things easier on the teachers, so Nico and Yoshiko were able to see each other a lot.

Her cousin, Rin, was the only cousin that was close to her and Nico's age. Riko and Hanamaru were older after all. Rin was her only connection into Nico's life. She was allowed to see her cousin, well, she was allowed to talk to Rin, and Rin was allowed to come to her house, but she was not allowed to go anywhere near to Rin's house. She wasn't allowed to get anywhere near their father. It was the same for Nico, she wasn't allowed anywhere near their mother. It was unfair, but Yoshiko or Nico didn't dare challenge their parents, it was legally binding, and two six year olds could never win in a battle against the country's legal system. Yoshiko didn't want to imagine what their father would do to Nico if they tried to leave him.

"Yoshiko-chan nya! You aren't listening to my story!" Rin pouted, poking Yoshiko's cheek.

"Sorry Rin, and anyway, it's Yohane! Yo-ha-ne!" Yoshiko yelled at Rin as the girl covered her ears and laughed.

"Yeah yeah! Yoshiko-chan, as I was saying…" Yoshiko tuned Rin out again as she watched her sister jump over a bar for PE through the window.

"Yoshiko-chan!"

"Call me Yohane you idiot!"

"Listen to me Yohane-chan!"

"Rin! You left your lunch at home! Oh hey Yoshiko-chan," Hanamaru greeted before turning back to her younger sister. Yoshiko wondered where Hanamaru had appeared from, but she didn't dare challenge her cousin's ability to disappear.

"It's Yohane," She whined quietly.

"Thanks Maru-nee! I was telling Yoshiko-chan about how Riko-nee embarrassed herself in fornt of Chika-nee yesterday! It was so silly!" Rin giggled and Hanamaru pet her sister's hair. Yoshiko felt nothing but cold hard jealousy set in. It was all so unfair.

"It was funny, anyway I'm going to Ruby-chan's house after school okay? Riko-nee will walk you home," Hanamaru gave Rin a small hug and ran off to her own classroom. Hanamaru was a part of the weird generation, they only other person in their friend group her age was Ruby. Then again, Yoshiko and Nico were outliers in that group. Their Aunt and Uncle had been part of a friend group that had been together since high school, even through Yoshiko didn't quite know how it came about. Her Aunt and Uncle's friends kids were all insanely close, and she had personally met all of them but two, but she was only close to Rin. Occasionally she would talk to Honoka as well, but Honoka was really close with Nico, and if they weren't careful, Honoka's denseness could expose their whole system.

Rin was her best friend and Honoka was Nico's. That was how it worked. Honoka should not have been in class A, Yoshiko knew this for a fact. Honoka had only been able to get in because Nico and her tutor their dad had insisted on getting Nico helped her study and because she has an insane amount of dumb luck.

"Yoshiko-chan! This is the third time! Do you not want to talk to me? I'm hurt!"

"It's Yohane and no! Fallen angels don't have time to listen to all of their little demon's ramblings!" There she goes again. She knew she wasn't a fallen angel. But she used it to escape. She felt like a different person when she was Yohane, Yohane could do anything, while Yoshiko was nothing but a scared child.

"I'm sorry Yohane-chan, Mom problems?" Rin asked. Yoshiko nodded and looked back at Rin for a mere second. Rin was her connection to Nico, but it was almost ironic how little Rin knew of their current situation.

 **xx**

Nico had quickly learned that crying never helped. She alway tried not to, but it was hard. Oh so hard. But all her efforts abandoned her when she was alone in her room after a night with her father venting his stress on her body with his belt. Her back was always covered in large ugly purple welts, and she knew if anyone saw the never ending disgusting monstrosities, she would be done for. Good-bye popularity, hello bullying. Thank god for the school nurse. All she had to do was pretend to be sick anytime her school did anything that required a swim suit and the nurse would let her sleep in her office whenever she wanted, without ever telling her father. The nurse never questioned her.

Nico laid in her bed with her aching back on display and tears slowly dripping onto her pillow. This pillow in particular was her crying pillow. And despite her efforts it was always wet. Nico pulled the covers over her aching body and she tried to pretend it didn't hurt, that always seemed to help, even if just in the slightest.

"Nicolette?" Always the full name. Never just Nico. Why did he ever even bother coming back?

"Good night father," Her father was determined to make their family appear normal on the outside. It was psychologically demanding on Nico and well as painful to keep up. But apparently saying good night was a part of the image of normality, even through no one was there to see them. Nico had a suspicion that he only said goodnight because he wanted to make sure she didn't read too late in the night and affect her grades. Her class ranking was his number one priority (concerning her at least) and if she were to let her grades slip even one bit, she would be severely punished.

"Good night daughter," Never a cute pet name, never a nickname, just the coldest thing he could say while still sounding sincere, daughter. She shut her book and turned her lamp off, releasing a long sigh from her lips as she laid on her back. There was still a dull ache, but there would be a dull ache no matter what position she laid in. She reached for one of the only stuffed animals she had kept hidden in her room from under her bed. She got her rabbit. She vaguely wished Yoshiko was holding her bat, and even through she didn't know for sure, it was comforting to think even though they were miles apart, the could still be connected.

When she turned four, her father had tried to throw away all her toys, "give them to charity for kids who needed them more" he had called it. Nico knew that it was only to increase his public image. Everything concerning her was. Nico was a child of public image. Everything her father did for her that could be considered "fatherly" was a stunt for the public. Even saying goodnight.

 **xx**

Yoshiko was asleep before her mom had come home. When the front door slammed behind the woman, the sound reverberating loudly through the quiet hallways, Yoshiko jolted awake. She was a light sleeper. She hadn't always been, but when your three year old sister came into your room in tears in the middle of the night trying to be as quiet as possible to avoid your parents hearing you were awake, you quickly had to learn to wake up to even the faintest of sounds. Despite the fact that Nico was in tears, she never mustered the courage to alert their parents to this fact, neither had Yoshiko. Because of this, both of them were silent criers, tears only fell with the safety of making sure no one other than each other could hear the twins pain. The last thing they needed was pity.

Yoshiko held her breath as loud footsteps passed by her door, her heart pounding with every second. In, out, silent. The steps passed and she let out a huge sigh of relief that her mother was going to leave her alone, again. Her mother at night was scary. Yoshiko sighed as she pulled her bat plush closer to her. Nico had a rabbit and Yoshiko had a bat, they were different but apparently part of a set. They had been a gift to them when they were two, their grandmother claimed "it reminded her of them, two twins, different but the same," Yoshiko never really understood how they were related but it went the same went for her relation to Nico. They were so different after all.

Yoshiko pulled the blanket closer to her body. All this thinking about Nico and her mother left her with a sense of numbness. Emotionally, she was dying from the ache that raged in her mind, but externally, her natural body heat was rapidly leaving her. It was too cold.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for reading this far, sorry this chapter is a little shorter than the last one! Please Review!**

 **I do not own Love Live!**

 **xx**

"Miss Nishikino," Nico groaned and turned to the maid next to her. She didn't dare complain about her lack of sleep though. Even to a maid. If her father ever heard her complain he would go especially hard on her. "Master Nishikino has already left for the morning, breakfast will be ready soon, I shall leave you to prepare yourself," The maid turned and left and Nico hid her rabbit in her sheets, quickly realizing she had left it out. The maids were always so formal, talking like it was 200 years ago. It was their job, Nico supposed, but that didn't stop it from sounding weird to her. At least it wasn't slavery. But with someone so vile as her father, she wouldn't really put it past him.

Nico got ready quietly, ghosting her fingers over her back. Pain was still emanating from multiple places. But she could deal with it. She would always be able to deal with it.

Once she was dressed, she descended down stairs and quietly ate breakfast alone. None of the servants dared talk to her. It was her prison after all, why would they bother with such pleasantries? She walked to school like normal, the crisp fall air surrounded her. Her and Yoshiko's birthday was coming up. October 31. People had always made jokes about their birthday being on Halloween, but Nico had always secretly enjoyed it. Her and Yoshiko could celebrate their birthday alone, considering the fact everyone always forgot their birthday, it was always over shadowed by the holiday. It was their special day, no one else knew.

"Oi! Nico-chan!" Honoka waved at her with a huge smile and she forced one on herself. She always left her house early to meet up with Honoka at her house before school. She wasn't allowed to be at Honoka's house most nights (it was good, she supposed, because Honoka didn't know about the secrets her clothes hid) because it would mess up her studying, at least that's what her father told her. So she changed to meeting Honoka every morning and having a second breakfast with her family.

Nico barely ate anything at her own house, it was too quiet, too intimidating, it always made her feel sick. So eating with Honoka was a nice change sometimes, she followed Honoka inside and took her shoes off, before following her to the table.

"Ah! Nico-chan! Good morning!" Honoka's mom was so nice. It made Nico's heart ache with jealously at how lucky Honoka was in terms of family, despite the fact they had basically adopted her. She spent every minute allowed at Honoka's house. Any opportunity to escape prison was worth being taken advantage of.

"Good morning Nico," Nico locked eyes with You, Nico taking her normal spot and forcing a smile on her face.

"Good morning Sonoda-san, You-neesan," Nico greeted back.

"I'm sure I've told you to call me Kotori Nico-chan," Kotori smiled at Nico, who blushed and took out of her water bottle. Her father had forced very polite habits onto her as a young child, and she had never broken those stupid habits.

"Of course, Kotori-san," Nico took up at Kotori to receive a warm sunny smile back at her.

"Hey Nee-chan, that's mine!" Honoka whined as You chewed on a piece of toast.

"Mine now," You answered with a teasing tone.

"Girls please, we have a guest," Umi appeared in the entrance to the room like normal and Nico giggled like normal.

"I doubt we have to be behaved around Nico-chan anymore, she's basically my sister now Dad," Honoka commented. Umi sighed and ruffled Nico's hair.

"I'm sorry for her Nico," Umi turned towards Nico, who shook her head to the side.

"It's fine, I don't mind," Eating with the Sonoda's was always so warm. At home everything was frozen under fifty layers of cold hard ice, never to be thawed by the warmth of the human emotion love. But the Sonoda's were different. Everything was warm, almost too warm sometimes. And all of them were filled with such love for each other, even when they were mad at each other. It always made Nico's heart twist with jealousy, but for some reason she always came back. Maybe because that on some days, she actually felt a part of it, like the ice was melting. Granted, the minute she stepped into her home, it froze back over faster than she could blink.

"Would you like some toast Nico-chan?" Nico nodded at Kotori's question. Umi ruffled her hair again, the way she showed her affection, Nico had quickly learned, and sat next to her.

"How was your night Nico?" Umi asked. It was innocent, but the question made Nico's muscles go stiff and her heart start raging in her chest.

"Um… Okay…" Nico trailed off. Just for a second, she thought she saw pity in Umi's eyes. It made her heart hurt.

"That's good," Umi smiled at her and turned to the food Kotori had put in front of both of them.

"Nico-chan, would you like some orange juice?" Nico nodded at Kotori's question.

"Nico-chan, did you finish the homework last night?" Honoka asked.

"Yeah, so?"

"I couldn't get through the last problem, and Nee-chan refused to help, can you help me through it before Tojo-sensei makes me do double the homework?" Honoka asked, Nico nodded and took out her folder from her backpack that she had set next to her chair.

"Tojo-sensei is really nice isn't she? Why would she make you do double the homework?"

"Nee-chan, you didn't have Tojo-sensei in second grade, she doesn't yell at you, but she is really, whats the word? Passing agreement?"

"Passive aggressive Honoka, the term is passive aggressive," Umi corrected her daughter.

"Ahh! Yes that! She'll threaten us that she's going to Washi-Washi us!"

"What's Washi-Washi? It sounds stupid," You commented.

"She won't tell us, but once, Hanamaru-nee got Washi-Washied and she's been terrified of her ever since!"

"That sounds fake," You retorted.

"It's not fake You-neesan, Hanamaru-neesan told us to never ever not do your whole homework," Nico answered, taking a sip of her juice with a smile.

"I'll ask Hanamaru than next time I see her," You rolled her eyes and left the table and ran upstairs.

"You two should get going soon," Umi ruffled Nico's hair once more, the girl whining lightly in response. Honoka and Kotori giggled.

"After I get the answer from Nico-chan," Nico handed her paper to Honoka and tried to fix her pigtails.

"Come here Nico-chan," Nico got off her chair and walked towards Kotori turned away from the woman. Kotori gently pulled the ribbons out of Nico's hair and smoothed her hair with her fingers and Nico felt herself leaning into the touch because it just felt so, good. She vaguely remembered her mother doing her hair as a toddler, how she would pull her short black hair, and how she would always scream at her mother it hurt and how her mother would tell her to be quiet and deal with it. Her father once caught her freaking out about her mother doing her hair, she had gone to bed without dinner that night. Yoshiko always let her hair be messy as a child, she was too scared of their mother's harsh hands. Nico didn't blame her, but pigtails were her signature style for as long as she could remember, and she didn't want to break that cycle. But everything about Kotori's touch was gentle, it never felt like she was trying to pull Nico's hair out.

"All done honey," Kotori pet her hand though one of Nico's pigtails and let the girl step forward.

"Thank you Kotori-san," Nico locked eyes with Kotori for a second.

"Of course Nico-chan," Kotori nodded at her. Kotori herself had grown up with just her mother, so she could kind of understand how Nico felt without one parent. Kotori knew of Nico's situation from Maki. How Nico and Yoshiko were torn apart, how both of them always seemed miserable ever since. Kotori couldn't imagine growing up without her mother, even if Nico had maids to help her, it was never the same for the poor girl. She had no mother to take her shopping or do her hair in the morning. Apparently, Maki's brother worked a lot and couldn't really take care of Nico. At least that's what Kotori knew.

"I'm done! Thanks so much Nico-chan!" Honoka handed Nico her homework, the girl stuffing it back in her bag and putting it on her back, her wounds straining as she stood. Nico didn't dare let it on though, all she let slip was a look of pure depression and fear for a millisecond.

"You two better go, have a good day," Umi kissed Honoka's cheek and offered Nico a small smile.

"Goodbye you two, have a good day," Kotori smiled at the two little kids and watched as they exited the house.

"Ah! Honoka-chan, Nico-chan! Is You-chan coming out soon?" Chika greeted them at the gate.

"She's right behind us Chika-nee!" Honoka answered. She felt Chika smile at her and raise her hand for her to give her a high five.

"Thank you Honoka-chan, you're my favorite you know? And don't worry I like you too Nico-chan," Chika shot one last smile at them before turning back to the house.

"Goodbye Chika-nee!"

"Goodbye Chika-neesan," Nico took Honoka's handed led her out the gate, the two eventually separating.

"Hey, Nico-chan, is Yoshiko-chan okay? I've noticed she looks like something is bothering her…" Honoka commented and Nico could feel her whole body freeze as she barely managed to suck in a breath. Even thinking about Yoshiko in pain was enough to set her separation anxiety into over-drive.

"I wouldn't know, you know I can't be around Yo-chan," Nico managed.

"Oh right, sorry, I forgot, but you seem to be the same way… Are you okay?" Nico wanted to laugh at the question. Of course she wasn't. Her whole back and stomach were covered in her father's abuse and her whole mind was clouded with anxiety for Yoshiko and pleasing her father enough to not hit her more. The mere thought of her being happy was impossible to obtain. And Honoka was asking her if she was okay.

"I'm fine Honoka," Nico was glad that her voice didn't betray her because she felt anything but okay. She felt like screaming, and crying, and breaking down, and running away and never coming home. But she didn't have the courage. She never would.

"Alright then, you know if you ever need to talk, I'm here," It sounded weird to hear Honoka with a serious tone. Honoka, the girl who almost got them lost last halloween because she thought taking short cuts down alleyways would help them get more candy. Honoka, who would once on a school trip took a dare to lick the pavement for two pennies. Honoka was not the brightest person she knew. But something about Honoka just drew her in. Maybe it was because Honoka was almost never serious, a huge contrast to everyone else in her life. Her piano teacher, her tutor, her maids and butlers, her father. Honoka was nothing like any of them.

"Okay," Nico muttered lightly. Honoka took her hand once again and squeezed it lightly, offering another smile to Nico.

"I love you Nico-chan, you're my best friend," Honoka told her. For some reason, even though the logical part of her knew Honoka was being serious, she felt like Honoka was lying to her. Or maybe it was that she felt that no one could love her. Honoka had told her this exact same sentence once, and that had been the first time anyone besides Yoshiko had ever told her they loved her. Never had her parents said those three words. And never would they.

"I love you too Honoka," Nico admitted. It was a more automatic response than heartfelt, but it did the trick.

"I mean it Nico-chan, I really really love you."

 **xx**

"I hope you liked what I packed for you Yoshiko, I made it this morning," And here her mother goes with the change in personality from last night, just like the night before, jus like every night really.

"Thank you mom, I'll be sure to enjoy it," Yoshiko forced a smile on her face as her mother kissed her forehead.

"I'll be home late again okay?" Yoshiko nodded. "That's my girl, see you tonight honey," And just like that her loving facade as a mother that she had in the morning disappeared into the garage, Yoshiko watching as she drove away. Yoshiko grabbed her bag with her homework and quickly left for school. She lived fairly far, but she could make it on time to her bus stop if she just ran a little. Once she boarded her bus, she opened her book and began to read. Even though reading wasn't really her thing, she knew Nico read a lot. Every week they would come up with a new book to discreetly get from the library and read it. Yoshiko was allowed TV everyday, but considering she had to read a chapter book every week to keep up with her sister, she wasn't able to watch that much of it. Once she reached her stop, she shut her book, too lazy to put it back in her backpack, and she began the short hike towards school. She found Rin waiting for her in the normal spot, perched outside of the school gates with a huge smile on her face.

"Morning Yoshiko-chan" Rin hummed and Yoshiko swore she was being overly peppy on purpose.

"It's Yohane, and good morning," Yoshiko greeted back.

"Guess what?"

"What?"

"We're combined today, and you and Nico-chan get to see each other!" Yoshiko already knew this fact. She kept a mental calendar of everyday they were combined, every time she could see Nico.

"That's amazing Rin," Yoshiko tried to sound sincere, but considering the small dejected look on Rin's face it hadn't worked.

"You aren't excited?"

"I already knew about it Rin, anyway, we better get to class, before Tojo-sensei decides to Washi-Washi you," Yoshiko teased, sprinting towards the building, hearing Rin yell "Hey!" at her and start to chase after her.

Yoshiko quickly scanned the room to try and find Nico before Rin got there. Nico was standing by her desk with a small fake smile gracing her lips. She was surrounded by people from class A and class B alike. Nico was the school idol after all. She locked eyes with her sister, who shot her a quick wave and a wink, and Yoshiko was able to breath out a sigh of relief with the visual conformation her sister was still there. She knew Nico wasn't dead, but she liked to see her, to lock eyes with her twin and telepathically tell her they were both as fine as they could be in this situation.

"Yohane-chan!" Yoshiko was pulled away from Nico by one of her classmates. But they remained in eye contact for as long as they could.


End file.
